It’s a Big Week for Lobbying Congress

There’s likely one last must-pass piece of legislation this spring, and everyone wants a piece of it.

Richard Blumenthal

A group of four parents who lost children to suicide following online harm flew into D.C. to advocate for passing legislation as soon as possible. Jose Luis Magana/AP

Lobbyists and advocates know they likely have one more chance to get Congress to act on pet projects before September, and it’s giving senators some headaches on the spring’s final must-pass legislation.

Less than a month after Congress passed a bill to force the sale of TikTok, a bill to help parents monitor their kids’ social media activity and require companies to mitigate certain harms has gained traction. The vehicle to make it law is the reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration, which expires on May 17.

Plenty of senators are trying to get their unrelated priorities glommed onto the FAA bill — from a nuclear compensation plan to a child tax credit to the expiring internet subsidy.